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Xcor
Xcor, blooded son of Hharm and an unnamed female Vampire, was born with a physical deformity -- a cleft lip. As a result, he was disavowed by Hharm and the female who birthed him, given to the Bloodletter for his soldiering camp. FUN FACTS: Background, Friendships, & Lifestyle Xcor was born breach "during a historic blizzard’s gale. Deep within a damp and dirty cave, as the icy gusts threatened the earthen womb". He'd been very much wanted by his father and his mahmen...until, they'd taken a look at his deformed mouth. His father, Hharm, had disavowed him on the spot, claiming Xcor a cursed child, and leaving him to his mother's care. She had given the newborn up to the Bloodletter to raise in his soldiering camps, not wanting to be saddled with a child she considered defective, either. Known as the Vampire who could only sire "weakling females" (the exact number and their identity is not revealed in the novel text) and a single "cursed boy" (Vishous), the Bloodletter took Xcor on as his blooded son, lying to everyone (including Xcor) as to the boy's true parentage, all to save face for himself. Within the camps, Xcor was trained for battle, forced to survive the brutal conditions required of him there and spared no pity or compassion by anyone, especially his father. As a result, Xcor became cunning and hard, but despite that training, there was no denying that there was a thread of honour underneath his skin. As a result, the other soldiers followed him willingly, practically worshiping him and obeying him without question. He formed an elite group of soldiers which he termed his 'Band of Bastards', and together they and the Bloodletter roamed Europe, taking and killing at will (in this way, they were very much like the Vikings of European history), but always remembering not to reveal their true heritage to the humans, per the King's law. It wasn't until Payne exacted her revenge upon her father, the Bloodletter, for the brutal treatment of her twin, Vishous, that Xcor and the Band of Bastards learned that he was not, in fact, the Bloodletter's blooded son (in Lover Unleashed). Despite that fact, the Band of Bastards agreed to continue following Xcor's lead. He brought them overseas to the 'new world', determined that the Vampires needed a change in leadership, and began plotting the assassination of the King, Wrath II. When his attempt to kill Wrath II failed to bring the King down permanently, Xcor realised he'd have to change his plans. During the battle to kill Wrath II, Qhuinn had bought time for the injured king to get away by fighting Xcor hand-to-hand. The two beat each other bloody, but survived the fight, going their separate ways. However, Xcor's injuries were bad. In a desperate move to save his Captain, Throe II contacted the fallen Chosen, Layla, and had her come to where they were to feed her powerful, healing blood to Xcor. One look, one taste of Layla's blood, and Xcor was struck with the Vampire's mating instinct. Attempting to ignore his need for Layla, Xcor focussed on his plans to overthrow the King's power and position instead of killing him, intending to install himself on the throne. He began working with various rogue members of the glymera, trying to politically manoeuver them into submission and compliance. What Xcor soon discovered, however, was that many of the glymera weren't to be trusted, as they would dispose of Xcor just as easily as they'd planned to depose Wrath II. It became apparent to Xcor quickly that he'd have to think of another way to earn power. As time went by, and despite his ambition to seize power, Xcor found it difficult to concentrate on anything but Layla. He finally gave into his need to see her and summoned her to come to him, her blood in his body providing a spiritual link to her. When she arrived, it became apparent to both of them that they were drawn to each other. However, being on opposite sides of a war was something they both recognised doomed their fragile feelings for the other. Also, in the interim, Layla had gone into her needing and had been serviced by Qhuinn. She'd bred during that time, and was pregnant with another male's children. This had been a blow to Xcor, who had wished he could have serviced her, despite how unworthy he was as a result of his ugliness. When he discovered there was no love between her and Qhuinn, however, he took the fact of her pregnancy better. One day, when drawn to see Layla again, he accidentally discovered the secret of the Brotherhood mansion and the mhis that surrounded it. Using that as his only bargaining chip to be able to see his beloved Chosen, Xcor blackmailed Layla into meeting with him once a month. During that time, they sat next to each other, barely talking, not touching. Those visits tormented both of them, but at the same time, eased them a bit, as being close to each other and seeing the other safe and unharmed did much to provide them both some relief. When Wrath II finally abolished the monarchy, turning the Vampire nation into a democratic-republic, in going with the theme of a new world and transition, the move surprised Xcor, and made him respect Wrath II. That, coupled with the fact that warring with the Brotherhood only put Layla in danger, made Xcor decide to drop all plans he had of taking over the Vampire nation. That decision created a schism between him and Throe II, who still had great aspirations for ridding their people of its newly elected (for life) president, Wrath II. When push came to shove, the rest of the Band of Bastards chose their loyalty to Xcor over Throe II, and Throe II was banished from the group. The damage was done, however; Throe II had 'outed' Xcor's mate bonding to a Chosen living with the Brotherhood. To Xcor's surprise, however, the other Bastards hadn't resented his luck. Instead, they were curious and a little in awe that Xcor could win the love of such a beautiful, pure Vampire of the highest echelons of their society. In The Beast, Xcor was severely injured, suffering a broken back and nearly dying from his wounds. The Brotherhood kidnapped him off the field of battle, hiding him away in The Tomb where he was plugged into human medical machinery to try to save his life. Their intention was to get him well so he could stand trial for attempting to kill Wrath II, and thus be legally executed. Xcor's death would, they figured, serve as a message to the glymera as well about the price of treachery. While Xcor was unconscious and recovering, Layla travelled over to the Scribe Virgin's Sanctuary and researched his past history. It was there that she discovered that Xcor was really the blooded son of Hharm, and that his half-brother, Tohrment I, had been granted by Wrath II the office of serving as Xcor's executioner once the trail had finished. Rushing back to the mansion to tell the others, Layla went into early labour. After a difficult time of it, she finally gave birth to fraternal twins, who were named Rampage and Lyric. At the end of The Beast, Xcor had woken up in The Tomb, realising he was at end-game, and his fate was coming for him at last. Book 15 in the series (release date: 4 April, 2017) is called "The Chosen" and will feature Xcor and Layla's story. Physical Description & Characteristics Xcor is described as being a 'big bull of a male', with arms and legs as large as those found on Wrath II. He's about the same height as his half-brother, Tohrment I, however, perhaps six-feet four or five inches. He has short, black hair and brilliant blue eyes, the same colour as his father's and his half-brother. His body is packed with muscle (not an ounce of fat to him), his neck is described as thick, and his overall looks, handsome...until you reach the level of his mouth where a severe cleft top lip make many who look upon him cringe and look away. Xcor is an accomplished soldier, quick on his feet, despite his muscle mass. He's a hand-to-hand combat specialist, but his weapon of choice is a scythe on the end of a staff, which gives him extra reach. Xcor is considered a cunning fighter, but his political machinations aren't well-considered, really (he doesn't think 3 or 4 steps ahead, only 1 or 2). He is not book-learned (like Zsadist, Xcor is illiterate), but he is 'street-smart' and a survivor. He can be cruel and hard at times, but he is loyal to a fault to those who befriend him. Self-conscious of his deformed mouth, he believes himself ugly and unworthy of affection. When he takes his pleasure from a female, he always keeps his face in shadow, so they won't be offended or scared. In the past, he would use Throe II's good looks to lure in a female prostitute or one who was sexually free, and then the two males would 'tag-team' the female for sex and blood. Sex for Xcor is a means to an end, however, the same as blood feeding. He takes his needs, but does no harm to females, and he thinks no more of them when he moves on. Until Layla. Xcor is madly in love with Layla, but they are star-crossed lovers as a result of his choices early on in the fight between the Band of Bastards and the Brotherhood. Besides, he feels himself unworthy of her and is at war with himself over bonding to her and letting her go. Despite this, he did make a great effort to acquire cash and to go into the human world to purchase nice clothing and cologne so he would look and smell nice for her during their monthly meetings. It would seem Xcor has a bit of a romantic side to him, after all. Romantic/Sexual Relationships * an unknown number of female Vampires and humans * Layla (Xcor's un-mated shellan) it:Xcor